THE CAMPBELL CASE.

Oamaru Mail, Volume I, Issue 124, 13 September 1876, Page 2

THE CAMPBELL CASE.

A special meeting of the Hospital 1 Committee was held this morning. It was convened,/by the Secretary, in accordance with a requisition he had received ;n6rpin. members of the Hospital Committee, to at once inquire into the case or the woman Johnson, alias Camp, bell. There were present: Messrs. Steward (in the chair), Lemon, Booth, Mainland, Rowlands, Locke, Clowes, Church, Headland, Dunn, .and T. H. Brown; Dr. Wait (as Surgeon-Superintendent), and Mr. Moore (warder). In speaking of the condition of the unfortunate woman, Mr. Headland said "he had never seen a more dreadful object. She was fearfully attenuated. In consequence of the burns the woman had terribly fallen away. The question for the Committee to consider was, Which should support the woman—the Committee or the public 1 or was she to be allowed to die ? There were three questions to be considered. Mr. Steward wished to make a short statement regarding the case. On Saturday he was in his office when Sub-Inspector M'Cluskey andthe Warder came to see him. The Inspector wished him (the speaker) to give an order to keep Campbell at the Hospital. He asked why ? Sub-In3pector M'Cluskey said Dr. Wait had ordered iier discharge. Tne speaker told the SubEnspector taat Dr. Wait was the proper person to order the woman's discharge, and the President could not interfere in the matter. Mr. M'Cluskey offered to bring the certificates from the medical men to prove the woman was in an unfit state to Isavo. He (the speaker) could not act if there were twenty certificates. The Sub-Inspector stated that he wanted the woman as witness in a case on Tuesday, but he told Sub-Inspector M'Cluskey that the woman was a free subject, and he would not order her detention. He would have to look after his own witness. Mi*. Headland thought there could be no doubt but that the woman was worse now than when she left the Hospital. Mr. J- Booth : As one signing the re-

quisition, lie"would give hi 3 version of the case. Messrs. Mainland and Moore came into his office, and told him that— Mr. Mainland : Excuse me, Mr. Booth, we were never in your office. Mr. Moose : No, sir, we did not enter your office that day. Mr. Booth : Well, that was the first intimation. Mr. Mainland : I must correct Mr. Booth again. He must have got his information from the Inspector. Mr. Booth : We handed a paper to the Warder of the Hospital, which read as ?o}!ows :—" From representations made by •Sub-Inspector M'Cluskey concerning the dangerous condition of Isabella Campbell, we, the undersigned, request that she may be allowed to remain in the Hospital until the hearing of Morrison's case, to be heard on Tuesday, the 12th inst.—Joseph j "Roots, John Mainland, Members of the Hospital Committee." Mr. Booth w r ent ! on to relate the circumstances of the woman being brought down to the Gaol, I and how he had asked Mr. Richmond to take her into his hotel. Mr. Richmond a-fced to this. He stated that the crowd around the express which conveyed the woman from the Hospital was excited, and Drs. Dale and Fleming.spoke of the inhumanity of the Surgeon-Superinten-•l "lit in ordering her out of the Hospital. He would suggest that the Committee should arb'ourn and see the woman. The Chairman ;'.as" about to put the suggest-'on as a resolution, but it was decided as nearly all the members had seen Campbell, it was considered nrineces-c-w. He would point out that the meeting had better determine what action they to take. Dr. Wait was in att ndance by request, and would no doubt be flTix'ius to have the matter settled. M l *. Booth handed in three medical stating that the woman was not fir. to l*»a,v« ths Hospital. They wer» ° : fimed bv Drs. De Lautour, Fleming, and Dal".

Mr. "Booth's motion that the Committee s'-orcM visit the woman at Richmond's T3V>+ o l was lost. Mr. Hradiand moved—" T'>at. the— Mr. Ct.owf.s. before the resolution was pu*, would like to know wa,s the scope of the meeting. He would like to hew froni Dr. Wait. Mr. Headland : Mr. Clowes, I think, is out of order. The Chairman : I think not. Mr. Clowes is in order. Mr. Ciowns ; Dr. Wait is here by request, and I think it onlv fair to him that we should hear hi 3 opinion on the case. Dr. Wait said : I saw the woman two or T>ree hours' after she was re-admitted. I did not see her for two or three davs previous to her leaving, as I had been unwell. .Mv partner (Dr. Garland) stated t/nat was quite fit to leave. On Saturdfv afternoon wben I saw her she was half drunk. I did not think was mnc 1 ' worse through leaving the Hospital at nK'M. I thouo-bt she had improved, and was fit to leave the Hospital. The woman was stronsr enough to walk I M'Oluskev threatened me with all of rains and penalties. He said he would telegraph to the Government. I asked why had left. She said s % e *ad been taken away, or something to that effect. I told her if she was fit to leave the Hospital during the nisrht she was fit to be discharged, and I instructed Mrs. Moore to that effect. I thonerht she was ouite fit to leave. Mv reason for discharcriug her on Saturday, instead of Monrlav, as advised bv Dr. Garland, was simply because I considered -her in a fit condition to leave; and having ■tife roles <&ihfe: Boroital.Y>tf ttfe Ta^iAiM

night,fl ednsidei'ed it my>;duty as Medi Superintendent to enforce the rules. I I thought: it; would have emperilled ! life or her health to discharge her, I shoi not, notwithstanding the infraction of t | rules, have discharged her. ' Mr. Headland moved—"That this Committee, having hethe statement of Dr. Wait, while in way questioning the propriety of II Campbell's discharge from the Hospital the time of her being so discharged, ; yet of opinion that her condition is sti at the present time that her re-admissi to the Hospital is imperatively necessai and make an order for such admission i cordingly, provided her present medit attendants consider that she can safely I removed. That, failing her being in a condition to be removed with safety, t! House Committee be empowered to pi vide attendance and nursing." Mr. Booth seconded the resolution. Mr. Dunn did not see what use the was in carrying the woman about t! country. He thought she ought to ha been left there when she was there. Mr. Mainland thought it was scarce likely that Dr. Wait would go to { Hospital to see her, when another medic man was attending her. Mr. Dunn would suggest that the Hon Committee should sleep on the premise to prevent patients getting away. Mr. Clowes : Or to see that SJj M'Cluskey does not send patients to tl Hospital on his own account. (Hea hear.^ The resolution was then put and ca ried, and the meeting adjourned.